Single trigger for plural firing mechanisms



United. States Patent SINGLE. TRIGGER FORQLURALIIRING MECHANISMS.

Creston F. Laager, Delanco,.NJ.

' Application April 9, 1-958, Serial No. 727,508

solaims. c 4z-.-69);i (Grantedunder Title-35, U.Ss Code*(-1-952), sec. 266)- The invention described herein'maybe manuiactured and used by or forthe Government for governmental purposes without the payment of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates to firearms such as are operable to fire a continuous series of rounds, and more especially to an improved multiple round firearm which is always uncooked except during the actual act of firing and wherein successive and identical movements of a single trigger are efiective to operate a plurality of firing mechanisms one after another.

In conventional multiple round firearms, accidental or unintentional discharge of a second round is a common occurrence. This is known as doubling. The present invention provides an improved multiple round firearm which is cocked and fired by a single movement of the trigger thereby eliminating the possibility of doubling.

A further feature of the invention is the elimination of the conventional hammer which exerts against the sear a pressure tending to retard its speed and acceleration. The improved firearm herein disclosed avoids this difliculty by the provision of a firing mechanism which is of the reciprocating type and is cooked and fired by a single motion of a trigger. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, this type of mechanism is suited for use in machine guns having a trigger which is actuated by a mechanical or electrical primer mover.

The invention will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings and its scope is indicated by the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view which illustrates the relation between the various parts of the firearm and is taken on the line 1--1 of Fig. 2,

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view which is taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1 and,

Fig. 3 illustrates a modified form of the invention wherein the various parts of the firing mechanisms are rearranged to permit their application to a gun of higher gage than that illustrated by Figs. 1 and 2.

Figs. 1 and 2 illustrate the improved firing mechanism as applied to a twenty gage double-barreled shot gun wherein the barrels are located one above the other. This mechanism includes a striker which is shown in its uncocked position, is mechanically coupled to a sear 11 and is biased to its illustrated position by a spring 12 held in place by a nut 13. Associated with the striker 10 is a firing pin 14 which has a stop 15 and is biased away from the primer of a cartridge 16 by a spring 1'7.

The sear 11 is biased to its illustrated uncocked or unarmed position by a spring 18 and is moved endwise by rotation of a gear 19 having pins 20 and 21 which are 180 degrees apart and arranged to engage the hooked end of the sear in its illustrated rest position and throughout its endwise movement. During its movement, the sear 11 is guided by a fixed stud 22 and a rocker 23 pivoted on a pin 24.

It can be seen irom Fig. 1 that the sear 11 is so 2 ,902,788 Patented Sept. 8, 1959 formed and arranged with respect to stud 22 and rocker 23 that its initial movement is linear and is effective to cock the striker 10. The stud 22 and the rocker 23 thus serve as a guide for the sear.

pins (not shown) which are displaced by 180 degrees,

have their centers on a line which is parallel with a line through the centers of the pins 20 and 21 in the illustrated position of the mechanism, and cooperate with the sear 26 in the same Way that the pins 20 and 21 cooperate with the sear 11.

Fixed to the same shaft 28 as the gear 27 is a four lobed star cam 29 which cooperates with a pawl 30 biased to its illustrated position by a spring 31. This pawl is movable with a trigger 32 which is biased by a spring 33 against a set screw stop 34 and has a stop 35 for limiting its rearward travel.

In the firing of the gun the trigger 32 is pulled rearwardly to the stop 35 and released. This movement is effective to rotate the gears 19 and 27 through an angle of degrees. As a result of this rotation of the gear 29, the sear 11 is moved as previously explained to cock and release the striker 1d and to be itself released from the gear and returned to its illustrated position by the spring 18.

Meantime the pin of the gear 27 (corresponding to the pin 24 of the gear 19) has moved through an angle of 90 degrees into engagement with the hooked end of the sear 26. Under these conditions, a second pull and release of the trigger fires the cartridge 25 in the manner set forth above in connection with the firing of the cartridge 16. During this movement of the trigger, the pin 21 of the gear 19 has moved through an additional 90 degrees so that it now occupies the position occupied by the pin 2% in Fig. 1. Meantime, the pins of the gear 27 have moved to a position where they are 90 degrees displaced from the hooked end of the sear 26 so that the next movement of the trigger is effective to operate the sear 11 as previously explained without affecting the uncooked condition of the sear 26.

The modification of Fig. 3 is similar in most respects to that described above. It differs therefrom in that (l) the two mechanisms are relocated to fire a higher gage cartridge, (2) the trigger 36 is fixed to the shaft of the gear 19 and biased to its illustrated position by a spring which is located in the interior of the device and does not appear in the drawing, and (3) the cam 29 and pawl 31 of Fig. l are replaced by a ratchet 38 and a pawl 39 which is pivoted on an extension of the trigger 36. The operation of this modification is similar to that set forth in connection with Figs. 1 and 2 and will be readily understood without detailed description.

I claim:

1. A firearm mechanism including a striker, a first spring biasing said striker to its uncooked position and compressible to cook said striker, a scar detachably coupled to said striker, a rotatable member detachably coupled to said sear for moving said scar and said striker to compress said first spring, a trigger for rotating said rotatable member, a guide constraining said sear movement to a linear path, and a second spring for applying to said sear a force whereby said sear is detached from said striker and rotary member at the end of said movement and is thereafter reengaged with said striker.

Further movement of the sear, however, permits one side of the rocker 23 to slide: down the sloped portion of the sear. As a result the 2. A firearm mechanism according to claim 1 wherein said sear has a sloping surface near the point of its engagement with said striker and said guide is a stud located at one side of said sear and a rocker arm located at the other side of said sear and engaging said sloping surface.

3. A plurality of firearm mechanisms each including a striker, a first spring biasing said striker to its uncooked position and compressible to cock said striker, a sear detachably coupled to said striker, a gear detachably coupled to said sear for moving said scar and said striker to compress said first spring, a trigger for rotating said gear, a guide constraining said sear movement to a linear path, and a second spring for applying to said sear a force whereby said sear is detached from said striker and said gear at the end of said movement and is thereafter reengaged with said striker, the gears of said mechanisms being intermeshed and rotatable to operate the strikers of said mechanisms one after the other.

4. A plurality of mechanisms according to claim 3 whereinsaid trigger is reciprocative.

5. A plurality of mechanisms according to claim 3 wherein the coupling between said trigger and said gears is a star 0am fixed to one of said gears and a pawl pivoted on said trigger and spring biased into engagement With said cam.

References Citedin the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 51,440 E11iott Dec. 12, 1865 2,409,939 Jenkinson Oct. 22, 1946 2,509,540 Sunderland May 30, 1950 2,509,734 I-Iigson' May 30, 1950 2,701,931 Polny Feb. 15, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 442,761 Great Britain Feb. 14, 1936 663,610 Germany Aug. 10, 1938 

